The Second's Second Chance
by PlatformNineAndThreeQuarters
Summary: People often forget that Hiraishin is a space-time technique. It can affect time alongside space. What awaits Tobirama Senju as he is sent fifty years into the future by an incomplete Hiraishin seal?
1. The Return of Niidaime

The Kinkaku force was closing in on them. As they tree-hopped at full speed, dozens of plans were being formed and promptly discarded in Tobirama's mind.

There was no way that all of them were going to survive this. Taking a deep breath, Tobirama finally made a decision, and signaled his students to stop at the upcoming clearing.

"One of us has to stay behind." He revealed without any preamble. Hiruzen, being his smartest student, was quick to grasp the logic behind his words. "I'll stay, sensei. I'll do my best to hold them off."

Tobirama shook his head. "As long as I'm alive, none of you will play the sacrificial pawn. You are the future of Konoha, and as my duty as Hokage and your sensei states, I'll be staying behind to provide distraction. Hiruzen, I wish for you to lead the village as the Sandaime, as it is unlikely that I'll make it. Now, make haste for Konoha and inform the village of this betrayal. I do not want any arguments." He held up his hand putting an end to the protests he knew were sure to come.

After taking a last look at his students, Tobirama turned back, intent on taking out as many members of the Kinkaku Force as he could, giving his students the best chance to make it back home alive.

Almost two hours later, Tobirama was lying face-down on dirt, bleeding from more injuries that he cared to count, more importantly with the entirity of Kinkaku Force dead by his hands. An ordinary ninja would have given up long ago, but he was Tobirama Senju. As long as he was breathing he could mould chakra.

Hiruzen was still a chunnin. Despite his high intelligence and knack for tactics, it would be difficult for him to manage Konoha's administration and military, especially with war on the horizon. Tobirama had immense faith in his student, however he didn't wish to leave him to flounder.

He thought back to the incomplete seal he had been working on in training ground 44, for long distance teleportation, which was far more likely to blown him to pieces than perform its intended function. Nonetheless, he was dying anyway. he didn't have anything to lose. He drew the seal on the ground with his own blood (there was plenty available), and activated it, being completely prepared for instant vaporisation.

He was surprised to feel the familiar sensation of being teleported by Hiraishin, albeit longer and more nauseating. A few seconds later he fell on his face again, this time thankfully on grass (which was a lot softer than Kumo's rocky terrain). He tensed up for a moment before sensing the chakra of Hashirama's mokouton imbibed in trees sorrounding him, and relaxed. He was aware that he wasn't going to survive unless he recieved urgent medical attention, and flared his chakra in the standard Konoha code for 'Medical Assistance Required'. He hoped someone stupid or brave enough to train in the inner areas of training ground 44 would be able to sense it.

It looked like his luck was shining that day because only after a minute he felt someone approaching. With effort, he rolled over to face his would be saviour, and was surprised to see Kagami's face looking back at him, when he had just left his student near the border of Lightening Country, which was two days away from Konoha, even at shinobi speed. He was about to question his student regarding this when the blood loss finally caught up to him and he lost consciousness. The last thing he saw was Kagami's panicked face as he took in the severity of Tobirama's injuries.

* * *

Despite the assumption of rest of his clan, Uchiha Shisui was neither stupid nor reckless. No one reached the rank of jonin with those characteristics, especially at the age of 14. However, at that moment, he was having doubts about his intelligence as h dodged another fireball from the giant caterpillar that had decided that Shisui would taste great as a roasted snack.

Even though he had been warned countless times by his superiors that the deeper sections of Forest of Death were only supposed to be used for ANBU team survival training, Shisui had entered the training ground without any backup.

It wasn't like he was unaware of the danger or overconfident in his abilities. But with the recent escalating tensions between the village and the Uchiha clan and the increasing probability of him using brainwashing genjutsu against his own relatives, he had just had enough. The revelation that Itachi had been spying on the clan didn't help the matter. For some time he just want to get away from everything- the village, the clan, Itachi, his teammates. With that mentality, Training ground 44 seemed like a good option.

12 giant crickets, 7 acid spitting leopards and 6 pyromaniac caterpillars later, breathing heavily with more scrapes, burns and bruises than he cared to count, he was regretting the decision of his past self. He was just about to hightail out of the forest (to never return again) ,when he flt a chakra flare in the pattern of a very old Konoha code (taught to him by Grandpa Kagami).

Despite his suspicions about infiltrators, Shisui proceeded towards the origin of the signal. Even if it was an enemy shinobi, it was necessary to detain him rather than leave him there with direct access to the village if he managed to get past the killer forest.

In a clearing not too far from Shisui's original location, he spotted a shinobi with his face down on the ground. He had spiky hair akin to Hatake-senpai and was sporting various injuries, which looked like they were from ninja weapons rather than any beast of the forest. As Shisui approached the shinobi rolled over to reveal a face Shisui couldn't help but recognize, before losing consciousness. It was a face he saw almost daily on the Hokage mountain.

Shisui was not prepared for this. The Second Hokage (Shisui activated his Mangekyou Sharingan just to be sure) was unconscious in the Forest of Death with life threatening injuries, while he should dead and buried long before Shisui was born. Oh my God, were those intestines that were poking out...

All right ,Shisui, calm down. Just treat it like a mission.

There is an unconscious shinobi with fatal injuries and suspicious background in a restricted section of the village.

Take him to the emergency rooms in ANBU headquarters.

Are those injuries going to be aggravated when he is moved?

Yes.

Is the shinobi going to survive long enough for interrogation if he is not moved?

No.

It took Shisui 2 seconds to come to a decision, following which he carefully picked up the Niidaime (Or a really good impersonator), and shunshined to the ANBU HQ.

* * *

Tobirama instinctively scanned the room for chakra signatures as regained consciousness. There were none in immediate vicinity which rendered it safe for him to open his eyes.

He found himself in a detainment room with chakra suppressing seals.

If it hadn't been for the seals, he would have assumed that he had been captured by Kumo. But Kumo ninja couldn't produce such seals if their life depended on it. Furthermore Tobirama recognised them to be modified form of his own design.

So, he was in Konoha.

Before he could dwell much into the possible scenarios responsible for his own village detaining him, the door opened to reveal a short, old man wearing the Hokage garb. Tobirama, however, was more fixated on his chakra signature.

"Hiruzen?" He blurted out.

What had happened to transform his teenage student to a gaffer, in span of what couldn't be more than a month, even in the worst case scenario.

The old man (Hiruzen?) smiled. " It's good to see you again, sensei. I apologise for the confinement. But exceptions can't be made. Even though I recognise your chakra, you have been missing in action for half a century."

Tobirama would never admit it, but he gaped.

"Will you be amenable for a mind walk? It would make the process of reinstating you much simpler." His student asked, not even trying to hide his amusement.

Tobirama's brain took a second to reboot. Half a century? Time travel? It was considered impossible, though that didn't mean much to Tobirama. He had defied the realm of impossibility too many times to count. An incomplete space time seal with a one in a million chance of doing its designated job, was definitely capable of producing such bizarre result. Tobirama preferred this to being blown to bits, but he wasn't naive enough to think that all his loved ones would have weathered the storm of time for fifty years.

Wait..

"Kagami didn't look any older when he found me in the forest."

"Ah... Shisui-kun bears a great resemblance to his grandfather. But surely you realised his chakra was different?"

Grandfather?? That was going to need some getting used to.

Tobirama centered himself, before answering," Training Ground 44 is saturated with Hashirama's chakra. It's difficult to identify different chakra signatures there, unless I'm concentrating, which, being delirious with blood loss, I had forgone to do.

Hiruzen nodded in understanding, as he always did when Tobirama explained something to him.

"I'll agree to a mind walk by the Yamanaka clan head." Tobirama stipulated, answering Hiruzen's previous question. Not only he had classified information that should be accessible only to the highest ranking Yamanaka, he didn't wish for his mind to be invaded by an untrained one, who wouldn't know to suppress involuntary emotional implantation. He already had enough on his plate without the added baggage belonging to someone else.


	2. Enter Uzumaki Naruto

Shisui stood alongside the Hokage and his council as the suspected (most likely the actual) Niidaime Hokage underwent the Yamanaka scan by Inoichi Yamanaka, who had been specially called back on duty despite being retired from T and I. The caution was necessary, of course. It wasn't everyday that you had someone claim to be Tobirama Senju and be almost actually be believed.

The Hokage had told Shisui that he was sure that this was the real Niidaime and the mind scan was just a formality. He told him that just before asking him to be the guide to the time displaced Hokage to the modern Konoha.

"Tobirama-sensei is very picky with people. I doubt he wouldn't accept anybody else." The Sandaime explained.

"But why would he pick me? He doesn't even know me." Shisui calmly questioned. No, he didn't whine. Uchiha don't whine.

"He knew your grandfather. You resemble him quite a lot, and not just in looks. Oh, look they are done." Sure, enough Inoichi-san was leaving the room to give his report.

"He is Tobirama Senju, Niidaime Hokage." He announced.

"I told you." Sandaime-sama chortled. "Go on, Shisui. You don't want to keep him waiting."

Ever the dutiful shinobi, Shisui entered the Interrogation room. He wasn't nervous. Uchihas didn't get nervous.

He knew from experience that a Yamanaka scan left the victim disoriented for a while. He patiently waited for Niidaime-sama to reorient himself to his surroundings.

It didn't take much time. Soon enough, he was at the recieving end of a stare from two non-sharingan red eyes.

"You're Kagami's grandson." The Second Hokage said.

He didn't think it was meant to be a question but rushed to answer. "Hai, Niidaime-sama."

His reply was met with a frown. "I'm no longer Hokage. I've given away my hat."

"Hai, Niidaime-sa...I mean, what should I called you?"

The former Hokage raised an eyebrow at that. "Tobirama."

Ah, one word answers, social inadequacy, genius, he was like Itachi, wasn't he? Shisui could do this. He already had experience with it.

"Would you like to go to the library?" Itachi always goes to books on the rare occasions when he doesn't know something. Perhaps Tobirama-sama would also like to fill his gaps in knowledge from books rather that asking questions and reveal his ignorance.

"That would be acceptable." He answered.

In the end the day didn't turn out as bad as he initially feared. Tobirama-sama was definitely not impressed with much of the history of Konoha after his supposed death. The second and the third shinobi wars, destruction of Uzushio, the Kyuubi attack, the Hyuuga incident...the list went on. Oh, he didn't say anything. It was just the way his mouth would twist whenever Shisui clarified a point which was glossed over by the history books, because of white washing and propaganda.

No, the real kicker didn't come until the end of the day, when Shisui was taking the former Hokage to Yakiniku Q. There was a huge crowd gathered in front of the restaurant and the owner was shouting at a little boy whom Shisui recognised to be the Kyuubi jinchiruchi. This wasn't going to end well.

"I didn't steal anything. I gave you money." The kid was shouting, trying to put on a brave face despite the tears and snot on his face.

"Be quite, brat. As if I would sell anything to a monster." The owner snapped, raising his hand to hit the young boy, when it was stopped by non other than the Second Hokage.

"What is going on here?" He asked, in a dangerous voice.

* * *

Naruto was hungry and Ichiraku ramen was closed because Teuchi-san had broken his arm falling down stairs. That was the only reason he went near the civilian district. He had heard good things about Yakiniku-Q from Chouji and decided to try his luck there.

But as it always happened, the owner there also had some unexplained grudge against Naruto and accused him of stealing. He wouldn't hear of Naruto trying to defend himself and as usual there wasn't going to be any help from the crowd. Naruto prepared himself to run away from another public humiliation, when a white haired geezer stopped the restaurant owner from hitting him.

"What is going on here?" He asked in a really scary voice.

Since he hadn't automatically assumed Naruto to be the one to blame, the blonde haired prankster rushed to explain his side of the story. "I just wanted to buy food but he's lying to everybody that I tried to steal meat. That's not true, I paid him 800 ryo and why would I want to steal meat, I don't even cook."

The old man looked at him briefly before turning back to the owner, "Even if he had stolen something, you are supposed to lodge a complaint with the police, not assault a child publically."

"Don't you know who he is? He's the demon brat." The teme spat in Naruto's direction.

"I'm perfectly aware of who he is, the jinchuriki of Konoha, the container of the nine tailed demon fox and the human sacrifice protecting Konoha everyday. He should be honoured instead of being reviled. My sister in law, Senju Mito was the first jinchuriki of Kyuubi and I wouldn't allow her legacy to be insulted in this way."

"Ah drat." Naruto heard the curly haired Uchiha beside the white haired man mutter, as he tried to understand what had been revealed about him. He had heard call him the demon brat, of course, but he didn't think in his wildest dreams that he actually contained the Kyuubi inside him.

Before he could ponder further about it Curly spoke up, "Tobirama-sama, Naruto-kun, I think we need to go to the Hokage office now."

That was when Naruto noticed that everyone in the crowd was staring at the white haired dude (Tobirama, Curly had called him) with wide eyes, as if he had committed some unthinkable crime. He wasn't given much time to observe as he was rudely picked up by Curly and carried to jiji's office with the swirly lead teleportation thing.

As he tried not to vomit on jiji's new carpet ( it wasn't that hard, he hadn't eaten much that day), he tried to think of where had he heard the name Tobirama before.

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen was a tired old man. He had been a Hokage for more than fifty years and it had aged him more much more cruelly than any other job might have. He had been ready to hand over the hat seven years to Minato and he had done so. Minato, a bright young man, was supposed to lead the village to heights Hiruzen had been afraid to imagine, while Hiruzen enjoyed retirement with his wife and children.

Then, Minato had gotten himself killed and turned his infant son into a jinchuriki, and Hiruzen had to take back the hat, before he was able to bury his wife. For the good of the village. That was all his life had been, for the good of the village, since Tobirama sensei had passed him the hat. Sometimes, during the especially dark days Hiruzen hated his sensei for that.

And now, because of some quirk of fate, Tobirama-sensei was back, as young and full of energy as he had been when they last saw him, which was fortunate because he would need his energy when Hiruzen would give him back his hat.

His musings were interupted by knock on the door, which was strange because normally his ANBU wouldn't allow anyone to get close to his office without Hiruzen's approval, except when it was Naruto of course. But the young boy was too boisterous to even knock so politely, leading him to the conclusion that his sensei had decided to visit him.

"Come in." He answered, and was proved right when Tobirama-sensei entered his office along with a sheepish looking Shisui, and, to his surprise, Naruto.

"Jiji!" the blonde boy yelled. "Why didn't you tell me that I'm a jinchuriki?"

Hiruzen felt his eyebrows raise that those words. He didn't need to ask who told him that.

"That is an S class secret, Naruto-kun. Please don't go talking about that in public." He told the boy.

Naruto scruched up his face at that. "But this jii-san did. You're not going to punish him, are you?" He looked at Tobirama-sensei, who raised an eyebrow at Hiruzen.

Hiruzen actually chuckled at that. "No, I'm not going to punish him. Why don't you go with Shisui-kun and he will show you some cool jutsu if you're good?"

"Really? Come on, Curly-niisan. I'll be really good." Hiruzen watched fondly as the boy manhandled one of his best ninjas out if his office.

"He's an Uzumaki." Sensei commented.

"He is." Hiruzen agreed. "There's no one left of his clan, though."

"What about Tsunade?"

"She hasn't been inside the village for the last fifteen years."

"What has she been doing?"

"Drinking, gambling, wasting away. It's certainly better than my other student who is experimenting on children and dissecting their corpses."

Tobirama-sensei looked at him for a few moments, before speaking. "I think you have carried this burden long enough. If you want, I'll carry it for you as long I'm able."

Hiruzen took the hat off his head, feeling a huge weight leaving his shoulders, and handed it to his sensei, as a tear rolled down his face.

"Thank you." He whispered.


	3. Niidaime Takes Charge

When Tobirama had chosen Hiruzen to become his successor, he hadn't had much time to contemplate on his decision and it's consequences. He had trusted his student's intelligence and will of fire to guide him and his other students to support their comrade and new Hokage.

Even though it hadn't been more than a few days for him, he couldn't believe how naive his past self had been.

Sure, Hiruzen had managed to not screw up completely. Konoha had survived... Actually, that was it. Konoha had survived. It wasn't strong, it wasn't stable and it surely wasn't the haven of peace Hashirama had intended it to be.

Seventy years after the establishment of Konoha and after three great shinobi war, one of which led to the destruction of Uzushio, peace seemed even further on the horizon than it did during the warring clans era. Even worse was the fact that Konoha itself had no peace amongst itself.

The clans were still as segregated as they were around the founding of village, with no corporation happening other than within the old alliances. Civilian born ninja were shunted of to genin corps and given no proper guidance to grow. The jinchuriki was treated like a village pariah. Danzo had fallen low enough to train an army of emotionless child soldiers in ways that would even put Hidden Mist to shame. And the Uchiha were on the verge of rebellion.

This was a mess and a half, and Tobirama was the one responsible to clean it, he thought as Hiruzen proceeded to tell him about the increased power of civilian council and changes to the academy curriculum.

"Stop." Tobirama said firmly. "Let us deal with one problem at a time. Who is Naruto-kun's official gaurdian?" He asked regrettably. Tobirama wanted to take the gaurdianship of the Uzumaki child, but it couldn't be fair to him if his gaurdian had to divide his loyalties between the village and him.

Hiruzen sighed. "My student, Jiraiya. He was chosen as Naruto-kun's godfather by his parents. However, he is responsible for Konoha's spy network and cannot spend much time in the village."

"I will reassign the gaurdianship, then. Are there any friends of Naruto-kun's parents who would be willing to take him in?" The Niidaime asked.

"Uchiha Mikoto has been petitioning to get his gaurdianship for years. She was a friend of Kushina-chan. But it wouldn't be wise to give the jinchuriki's gaurdianship to a clan that intents on rebelling."

Tobirama contemplated on that. "I think it's the perfect solution, hitting two birds with one stone..."

"But.."

"Hiruzen, Naruto-kun's seal is so masterfully made that even I can't open it without a key, let alone the Uchiha. Giving Naruto-kun's gaurdianship to Uchiha Mikoto would be instrumental in conveying our trust in them. It would be a step to come to a peaceful solution."

"Sensei..."

"What were you planning to do about this coup?" He interjected.

"I was hoping that they'd drop the plans after realising that they won't stand a chance against the collective might of Konoha."

Tobirama couldn't contain his snort at that. "The Uchiha? Surrendering against impossible odds? If there is one thing I've learnt about that clan is that they are stubborn as mules. If they think they are right to carry out the coup, they would do that regardless of the odds of succeeding. The only way to stop them would be to either convincing them that a coup isn't required or committing a full scale genocide."

Hiruzen's silence indicated that he had considered the idea of genocide. Tobirama was finding it hard to compare this tired old man with the bright eyed, optimistic young man he knew, or had known.

"That boy, Shisui? Does he support this coup?" He asked.

"No. He and the clan heir, Itachi, have been spying on their clan for the village. They are also trying their best to put a stop to the plans."

"Shisui wouldn't have much luck in that. Despite his rank, he's still a teenager. He wouldn't have much influence with the elders. How old is the heir?"

"Twelve." Hiruzen answered, causing Tobirama to stare at him with incredulity.

"Twelve? How has he been passing you information? Thorough his homework at the academy?" He asked, as a brief flare of irritation in chakra if one of the ANBU stationed in the room drew his attention. "Or maybe not." He murmured, before calling out. "Crow."

The next moment, a small ANBU operative was standing in front of him.

"Remove your mask." Tobirama ordered.

The ANBU obeyed promptly, revealing the face of a pre-teen Uchiha.

"Didn't I write a clause that restricted entry in ANBU to those below fifteen?" The Niidaime asked his student.

"I changed it to make the minimum age to thirteen." Was the reply.

"Did you also change the number system to make thirteen come before twelve?"

"Itachi-kun here was an exception." Hiruzen replied, as the boy stood silently with face perfectly blank.

"Is that so?" Tobirama murmured. "I'm afraid I cannot let this continue, Uchiha-kun. Please, hand over your mask."

The boy did so, only hesitating briefly. "I mean no disrespect, Niidaime-sama, but my father would consider this an insult."

The words could be taken as an idle threat from an entitled brat, but Itachi's grave tone indicated that he was more worried about the effect of his demotion to village clan relations.

"And if I take you on as my apprentice, would he still consider this an insult?"

That seemed to still the Uchiha for a moment. "No, Niidaime-sama, he wouldn't." He answered, without emotion.

"Then, return home and tell your father the news, Itachi-kun."

The young boy bowed deeply before vanishing.

"An apprentice?" Hiruzen spoke up. "Not that I disapprove, but you barely know anything about him. What made you decide to take him on as your student, sensei?"

"The same thing that had prompted me take in you and your teammates as my students- the Will of Fire."

* * *

Time was a strange thing. It healed wounds, distorted memories. Over the years it changed people's perception so much that they wouldn't even recognise their past selves.

Shimura Danzo realised this the day he heard the news that the Niidaime had somehow appeared in Konoha, alive and not a day older than he was last seen. His first reaction had been disbelief. There was no way that an alive (and supposedly immortal) Senju Tobirama would remain away from Konoha when it suffered through two wars.

When Yamanaka Inoichi performed a mind walk on the individual and declared him to be the real Senju Tobirama who had time travelled because of a sealing accident, Danzo's reaction hadn't been joy at his sensei being alive, as he had expected it to be. It was dread.

Over the years, even after the death of his sensei, Danzo had served Konoha in a way he had imagined that the Niidaime would be proud off. Hiruzen was a soft Hokage and unlike Tobirama-sensei, he didn't have the guts to make hard decisions. Danzo, therefore, immersed himself in darkness to give Konoha a fighting chance in the wars.

But now that he knew that the Niidaime was back, Danzo wasn't so sure that his methods would meet the approval of his sensei, who had decided to take the hat again.

He was proved right when he was summoned to the Hokage's office a day after the Niidaime's second inauguration.

"Danzo." Tobirama-sensei greeted as he entered the office, without looking up from his paperwork.

"Hokage-sama." He replied, keepin his voice emotionless. "You summoned me?"

"Yes. I would've thought that a change in regime would be enough of a reason for the Hokage's council to meet the new Hokage, but now that I can sense Kagami's Sharingan under your bandages, I see why you wouldn't want to meet me." The Hokage answered.

Danzo didn't reply. He didn't need to.

"I'm assuming that since their hasn't been any record of Kagami bequeathing you his eye, you took it from him?"

"I took it from his corpse, yes." He confirmed.

Tobirama-sensei looked up and Danzo felt those red eyes pierce his soul. "I've been going through the records. Who started the Third Great Shinobi War?"

"I did. Hatake Sakumo's mission had been sabotaged. War would have started eventually anyway, but at that time Konoha would have been the village that benefited the most from it." Danzo felt he had to explain, even though the man in front of him was decades younger than him.

"And did it? Did Konoha benifit from the war?"

"It didn't." It stung him to admit.

"War never benifits anyone, Danzo. I thought I had been successful in teaching you that lesson, but apparently not." The Hokage noted. "I have a mission for you."

"A mission?"

"Yes. It is one suited to someone of your capabilities. You are to track down the missing nin Orochimaru, defeat him to bring him back to Konoha, dead or alive, and rehabilitate any victims he kidnapped to experiment on, regardless of their nationality. This is a solo mission. Orochimaru is an S class opponent. Sending even three teams of ANBU wouldn't be enough to match him, and wasteful when he can be handled by a single shinobi."

That was an embellishment. Danzo, while a war veteran and accomplished ninja, was an old and crippled shinobi, while Orochimaru was still in his prime. He would certainly be capable of defeating Orochimaru, but this mission was as likely to end in his death.

Still, it was a mission given to him by his Hokage, a Hokage he respected. A Hokage that was ruthless enough to send his own former student to his death when he wanted it out of the way. Danzo didn't fear that Konoha would be in safe hands even if he perished at Orochimaru's hands.

"As you command, Hokage-sama." He answered, bowing his head, before leaving to prepare for what could be his last mission in life.


	4. Naruto's New Family

"That's awesome." Shisui exclaimed, settling down on a branch. "Even Kagami-jiichan wasn't a proper apprentice. You'll be like the first Uchiha to be a Hokage's apprentice."

Itachi sighed. It was almost word to word similar to his father's reaction when he told him of Niidaime-sama's decision to remove him from the ANBU and take him on as an apprentice. Only with less enthusiasm and more arrogance.

"Don't you see the problem with this?" He asked, taking a place in the tree opposite to Shisui.

"Problem? What problem? This is like the answer to all our problems." Shisui said.

"More like delaying all our problems. After being announced as the Hokage's apprentice, the clan would expect me to become his successor when he retires."

"So?" Shisui asked, dumbly.

"So? Niidaime-sama has been known to hate the Uchiha. He would never nominate me as his successor. He only took me on as an apprentice to diffuse the coup situation." Itachi protested.

Shisui started shaking his head before Itachi stopped talking. "I think you've got it all wrong. Look, why don't you talk to Niidaime-sama about it? He's your shishou now, this is the kind of stuff he can help you with."

Itachi blinked. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. A master is like third parent. And I don't think he'd have took such a responsibility if he hated you. His reputation of hating the Uchiha is completely overblown. He was responsible for killing a lot of Uchiha when our clans were at war, but what was he supposed to do? Roll over and die?" Shisui said.

"What about making us in charge of the police force to keep us in the village?" Itachi questioned, his faith in his father's teachings wavering a bit.

"According to Kagami-jiichan's journal, it was because of risk of bloodline theft. The Hyuuga had their seal, and Niidaime-sama had volunteered to design a better deal for both the clans, but with newly established peace, trust was an issue. So, the police force, to keep our weaker members safe in the village."

"Maybe I shouldn't go into this with preconceived notions based on incorrect facts." Itachi mused.

"You definitely shouldn't." Shisui agreed. "He's a great guy. I spent a day with him, showing him around, you know. I think he's quite a bit like you."

"Like me?" Itachi asked, surprised.

"Uhm hm. So, when are going to get the Uzumaki kid?" Shisui deflected.

Itachi narrowed his eyes but let it go. "Kaa-san said we'll go as soon she'll able to get the documents from the Hokage Tower, which is quite busy right now, with the new administration. She doesn't want to give Danzo any more ammunition to use against the clan."

"Oh, didn't you hear? Danzo has left on a mission." Shisui informed. "Honestly, don't you listen to gossip? It's all over the village. S-rank apparently, according to Genma, who was at gate duty."

"That's unusual." Itachi commented. "I've a feeling things will be changing a lot around here."

Shisui chuckled. "You'll get to near the centrepoint of the change. Why aren't you there now, by the way?"

"Niidaime-sama gave me a week off, after looking at my work hours. Apparently, I'm in my growing age and required to have proper sleep and rest." Itachi complained.

"There you go, Itachi. You almost sounded like a real teenager. Only if you weren't grumbling about getting a holiday..." Shisui teased.

Itachi was about to reply when he heard familiar footsteps approaching the clearing.

"Your limplet is coming." Shisui commented. Itachi ignored him, jumping down to the ground.

"Aniki, aniki." Sasuke burst into the clearing, running, before coming to a stop in front of Itachi and breathing heavily.

"What's the hurry, outoto?" Itachi asked.

"Kaa-san asked me to get you. We're going to get our new brother." Sasuke answered, beaming.

"Right now? She was going to wait for the paperwork." Itachi said, surprised.

"An ANBU came to give it to her. She's saying we're going right now, but she's not saying anything else. You know, don't you? Who's our new brother? He's younger than me isn't he? Who were his parents and..." Sasuke rambled. Shisui was laughing quietly, hidden in the trees.

"Alright, calm down. I'll answer your questions one at a time." Itachi said, as he started walking towards their home. It wouldn't do to delay when Kaa-san had asked to come immediately. "Yes, I know who he is. Yes, he's younger than you, though only by a few months. His mother was a friend of Kaa-san who died when he was a baby, along with his father."

"That's horrible." Sasuke frowned. "Who did he live with until now?"

"He lived a few years at the orphanage. But he's been living alone for the last three years."

"Why didn't Kaa-san get him sooner then?"

"That's a bit complicated. I'll tell you when you're older."

As expected, Sasuke huffed at that. "I'm a big kid now. I'm even going to get a little brother today."

"Okay, then, I'll tell you when you're chunnin." Itachi 'corrected' himself.

"That's not fair, aniki." Sasuke whined.

* * *

Naruto couldn't believe that he didn't recognise the Second Hokage when he rescued him from the angry barbeque guy. He had been seeing that giant face along with the other three Hokage, for as long as he could remember.

Of course, he hadn't expected to actually meet the Second considering that he had died like a million years ago. Neither had anybody else. It was really funny, seeing everyone's faces at the Hokage inauguration. It would be even funnier if the Shodaime came back from dead next and demanded his hat back. Of course it would make Naruro's ambition of becoming Hokage a thousand times harder, so he didn't actually want it to happen. Maybe he if could return only for a day or two...

Naruto's musings were interupted by a knock at his door. He opened the door, wondering who it could be, only to come face to face with a very pretty dark haired woman with big eyes. She was smiling at him, which was unusual because people didn't smile at Naruto.

His observation of the pretty woman was cut short by an exclaimation of "Dobe!" in a familiar voice. Uchiha Sasuke was standing beside the pretty woman.

"Teme." Naruto replied, as the woman, who must be Sasuke's mother scolded him. "Sasuke, language!"

"But Kaa-san..." The teme protested.

"No, buts. Is that how you'll greet your new brother?" She cut him off, before turning to a confused Naruto. "Naruto-kun, My name is Uchiha Mikoto. I was good friends with your mother, before she died. I would like to take care of you as your son, now that Niidaime-sama was approved of my request to adopt you."

Naruto simply stared at her for a few seconds. The words had reached his brain but perhaps something was preventing him from understanding them correctly. Because that couldn't be true, could it? Sasuke's mom couldn't want to adopt him. Maybe it was a joke?

"Is it a prank?" He asked her. "Because it's not a very good one, dattebayo."

"Oh, Naruto-kun..."

"No, it's not." Sasuke spoke up firmly, crossing his arms on his chest. "Kaa-san has been waiting for the paperwork for days. And aniki is back home preparing your room. Of course, it's not a joke. You're going to be my little brother now, I guess I'll call you outoto instead of dode. You better start calling me nii-sama."

Naruto looked at Sasuke incredulously, before glancing at his mom. She was hiding a smile behind her hand, but the kindness in her eyes was genuine.

"I'm not going to be your little brother, teme." Naruto protested, starting to believe the two of them. He knew Sasuke, even if he was a jerk, he wouldn't play such a cruel prank on Naruto. "If anything, you'll be the one calling me nii-sama. It's obvious that I'm the more awesome one."

"That's not true. And besides, you are younger than me. Aniki said so. Kaa-san, tell him." Sasuke demanded.

"It's true that Sasuke is two months older than you Naruto-kun." Mikoto-san answered.

"Phh, two months." Naruto laughed. "Two months don't matter at all."

"They do." The teme whined.

"Alright, both of you, calm down. We're here to get Naruto-kun packed and move him to our home. Not fight about the importance of two months difference in age." Mikoto-san scolded gently. "Now, get to work. It is your mission as a shinobi of Konoha. Gather and pack all of Naruto-kun's belongings."

"Won't you be helping, Kaa-san?" Sasuke asked, sending a mournful look into Naruro's dirty apartment through the open door.

"I'm a jonin, hence I'll supervise. I'll help if you encounter something you cannot handle." She answered.

"You don't have to worry about that, Sasuke's mom." Naruto announced, wearing his wildest grin ever. "There's nothing that Uzumaki Naruto can't handle."


	5. Making Changes

Kakashi slipped into the Hokage office through the window, only to be stopped short by the sight of more than a dozen Senju Tobirama working on a mountain of paperwork. It took a second for his brain to register that he was looking at shadow clones and then he wondered why the Sandaime didn't use the technique for completing his paperwork.

"Ah, Hound." One of the Niidaime, probably the original, said. "Are you prepared for a mission?."

Kakashi knelt in front of the Niidaime that addressed him. "At your command Hokage-sama."

"At ease. Are you familiar with the organisation called Root?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama. I was a member of Root for some time." He admitted.

"That would make things easier for you." The Niidaime said. "I'm disbanding Root right this moment. Your mission is to take as many teams of ANBU as you need, for a raid at the Root headquarters, take every member into custody and escort them to Interrogation.

Kakashi processed that for a minute.

"Not Torture and Interrogation?" He asked finally.

"It was renamed today." The Hokage replied. "The damiyo expressed some reservations with the previous name, when I happened to mention it in passing. Do you have any questions?"

"The Root operatives have a seal on their tongue that prevents them speaking about the organisation. T and I, sorry, Interrogation wouldn't be able to get anything out of them."

"I'm aware of the seal. They have the schematic to remove them." Was the reply. " If there isn't anything else, I'll expect your report in three days."

Kakashi quietly slipped away at the dismissal, his mind already devising a strategy to complete the mission with minimum bloodshed.

At the end, none of his plans were required, as he Root operatives surrendered peacefully to the ANBU, as with Danzo out of the village, the Hokage was their commanding officer. Simply telling them that Hokage-sama had ordered their presence at Interrogation, had them complying.

Three days later, Kakashi was standing in front of the Hokage, delievering his mission report.

"The raid was successful with no casualties. We were able to detain 43 operatives and 20 trainees who are between 5 to 9 years of age. All of them surrendered without any resistance. Two teams of 3 and 4 members each are currently on a mission of unknown whereabouts. I've assigned Owl to search their headquarters for any information on the said missions."

"How did the interrogations go?" The Niidaime asked, appearing unconcerned about the missing operatives.

"The seals on their tongues were easily removed with the help of the schematic you provided. They still refused to answer questions about Root and Danzo. They claim to be loyal to Konoha and to the Hokage, but their loyalty to Danzo supercedes everything."

"I see." The Hokage said, still looking untroubled. "See to their relocations, then. Offer them a place in the archive or the ANBU, depending on their choice. As for the children, if they have any clan or gaurdians, return them to their homes. The rest of them would be made wards of the ANBU."

"The ANBU, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi couldn't help but question. "ANBU are supposed to be completely loyal to the Hokage above all else. They will be compromised the second Danzo returns."

"That wouldn't be an issue." The Hokage waived off his concerns.

"Begging your pardon, Hokage-sama, but I think it would. Danzo might have been your student five decades ago, but he wouldn't have the same loyalties to you now. He even tried to assassinate Sandaime-sama." Kakashi blurted out.

The Niidaime raised an eyebrow at his outburst. "Through you, if I'm informed correctly?"

Kakashi had the decency to blush at that. Though, it hardly mattered because of his two sets of masks.

"I'm aware of the fact that Danzo isn't the same person I knew as my student. I'm not concerned about what would happen when he returns is because of the fact that he is very unlikely to return from the suicide mission I've sent him on." The Hokage continued.

Kakashi stared at the Hokage in shock at that revelation.

"And if he does return?" He managed to counter.

"Then I'll deal with it."

Well, that was that, then. Kakashi nodded and left to start on the troublesome work of relocating the former Root operatives. He had a feeling that most of them would end up in ANBU.

* * *

Nara Shikaku was an intelligent man who was rarely taken by surprise, having devised and decided multiple scenarios in his minds and their approximate probability, most of the time he knew what to expect. But he was definitely surprised that morning, to see the Niidaime in the waiting room of his office.

"Hokage-sama. Please come in. I,... You could have summoned me." He stumbled in his words. Another rare occurrence.

"You do have your own work, Nara-san. I merely wanted some answers. It's no trouble for me to walk a few blocks." The Hokage replied.

"Of course. What can I help you with?" Shikaku asked, gesturing the Hokage to take a seat.

"I've been reading some recent reports and have noticed that two out of three jonin are failing their genin teams, particularly ones with non clan genin. I was hoping that you might be able to help me understand the reason for this?" Niidaime-sama asked, his voice conveying the seriousness of the issue.

"It's not prejudice, if that's what you're thinking. The academy standards have declined a lot over the last few years, especially in peace time. The graduation exams comprises of performing three E rank jutsu. The clans are able to compensate the education of their children, but the others graduates, orphans, civilian born children, are not ready for anything beyond D ranks when they graduate, which are basically chores these days." Shikaku replied.

The Niidaime frowned at that. "I see. And why have the academy standards declined so far?"

Shikaku knew that the Niidaime himself was responsible for the establishment of the academy, and he had to tread carefully. "The civilian council has gained quite a bit of sway since the Kyuubi attack. They pushed for lowering graduation requirements since civilian born children found it difficult to clear the exam."

"I would prefer that you'd be frank with me, Nara-san." The Niidaime said, sending him a 'look'. "I would like to hear about your opinion on the academy model."

"Very well, Hokage-sama. I don't think the academy model works. You'd have seen it if you'd remained in power following the years it was established, especially since the civilian population grew." Shikaku began, calmly, taking a breath. "The students which are enrolled in the academy are a diverse group. They all have different upbringing, chakra capacity, blood limit, literacy, intelligence... I don't think lumping them together for a few years teaching them thr basis of shinobi arts and then putting them on a team of three with a jonin, to do missions, is the best way to teach our future shinobi."

Tbe Hokage contemplated that for a second before replying, "Do you have an alternative."

"Dozens. Though the best one would be assigning teams early at the start and assigning them chunnin teachers instead of jonin, and have them perform D ranks as academy students." Shikaku said, assuming his 'thinking pose'. "Promotion to genin should be handed out after survival and combat evaluation."

"That is a good plan." The Hokage agreed. "A bit ambitious, though. I hope it wouldn't disrupt your routine too much to get it in motion before the next academic year." He said, getting up.

Shikaku stared in silence as the Hokage left his office.

"Troublesome." He muttered, finally.

* * *

Itachi dodged another strike coming his way, leaping backwards to gain space. He quickly went through the hands signs of the Great Fireball jutsu only for his opponent to dodge, with seemingly no effort. He only just ducked in time to avoid a kick aiming for his head, only to be caught by a jet of water. A kunai appeared at his throne as he tried to regain his bearings.

"Yield?" His opponent questioned.

"I yield." He admitted defeat, for the third time that day.

"You are improving." Tobirama-sensei commented. "The genjutsu affecting balance, that was good work."

"It didn't affect you." Itachi protested, only for his teacher to stare him down.

"I hope you won't be evaluating all your genjutsu based on whether they work on me or not."

"Why not? If they're good, they should work on anyone." He countered.

"I'm immune to genjutsu, Itachi."

"Is that even possible?" Itachi questioned.

"Why don't you tell me? How would it be possible to be immune to genjutsu?" If it was anything Itachi had learnt in the past week, it was that Tobirama-sensei didn't miss a teaching moment, be it life lessons or shinobi arts.

He thought out on the question a bit before attempting an answer, as his teacher waited patiently. "Is it because you can sense the foreign chakra entering your system and dispell it even before it has a chance to affect your senses?"

"That is a good answer." Tobirama-sensei complimented. "It would have been the right one if Izuna had never caught me in a genjutsu that affected my chakra sense."

"A genjutsu to affect chakra sensing? How would that work?" Itachi asked, eager to learn about a genjutsu he had never heard of.

"I wouldn't know. You'd have better luch looking into your clan archives." His teacher admitted. "The answer to my previous question, however, is seals. I invented seals that prevent foreign chakra from entering my system at all. It backfired for a bit when even medical chakra wouldn't work on me when I was severely injured. I had to make a few additions to the seal after that." He suddenly sat up straighter. "And speaking of medics, there is a famous one arriving at the gates of Konoha at this moment."

"Tsunade-sama?" Itachi deduced. It wasn't difficult, Tsunade-sama was the only famous medic he had heard off. Additionally, she was also related to sensei.

"Yes." Sensei confirmed, holding out his hand. "I'll teleport us to the gates. Try to keep your lunch in."

Itachi nodded and braced himself, before giving his hand to sensei. The next moment, he felt being squeezed through a microscopic tube and appeared near the main gates, gasping a bit. Atleast, he didn't throw up like the first time...

"... I don't care. If the Niidaime is really back, get him to the gates. I am not setting a foot inside if this turns out to be some scheme concocted by sensei to get me back here." A blonde women, whom Itachi assumed to be Tsunade, was shouting at the chunnin gaurd on duty, before falling silent as she noticed Tobirama-sensei.

"I'm here, Tsuna. You can stop terrorising the poor chunnin." Sensei said, gently.

"Jii-chan?" Tsunade asked in a small voice, suddenly sounding vulnerable.

"It's me, Tsuna. You can sense that, can't you?"

Tsunade nodded, regaining her stern expression. "How are you back? Was it that jutsu you created?"

"No. I'm afraid it was an accident with a space time seal."

Itachi observed a small smile appearing on Tsunade's face at that answer. "Only you, jii-chan. Does that mean I'm older than you, right now?"

"You sure don't look like it?" Tobirama-sensei answered, probably avoiding a pitfall, before gesturing to Itachi to come forward. "I'd like you to meet my apprentice, Itachi."

Itachi stepped forwards and bowed respectfully, as Tsunade observed him, before introducing her own apprentice, Shizune, who had appeared breathing heavily as they were talking, carrying a small pig.

"Will you be coming inside?" Sensei asked them, as both of them were still noticably standing outside the gates.

"What if we don't?" Tsunade countered.

"Then you don't." Sensei answered. "But then you don't get to come back ever, Tsuna. You don't run from your duties and get to enjoy your rights."

"So, that's it, then? After all I've done for Konoha, you'll just declare me a missing nin?" She asked.

"I won't declare you a missing nin. I'll declare you a shinobi with no association to Konoha and remove you from the citizens register." Was the answer. "You've been drinking and gambling your life away, and that shouldn't reflect on Konoha. You don't have to remain a shinobi if you return, though. You can retire. You can restore the Senju clan compound, something for which I haven't found time for. You can work on implementing that medical program you had proposed for, before leaving. You can heal, instead of keeping your wounds fresh and bleeding."

Itachi saw indecision warring on the slug sannin's face for quite a while. A few times, he feared that she'd just turn away and leave, but after a few minutes a determined look appeared on her face before she held Shizune's hand and resolutely took a step inside Konoha.


End file.
